‘Some legs I was brilliant, going out in 10, 11, 12 darts, but others were sloppy, so I think there is more in the tank, which is scary.

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‘I can compete with [Michael] Van Gerwen and it’s a pity he wasn’t there at the weekend because I’d liked to have tested myself against him.

‘I know I’ve got the game and it would be good to test myself mentally. I’m looking forward to [the Premier League in] Nottingham in a couple of weeks where I can give him a good run. I know I can beat him, as long as the right version of me turns up.’

Back-to-back titles is a sensational achievement for the Welshman, but he didn’t have time to celebrate the victories as he is working hard doing up a property in his home village of Markham.

He credits the interests outside of darts and his recent departure from social media for his renewed focus and success on the oche.

‘I was home on Sunday night, then 7.30 in the morning I’m at the property that we’re moving into in the next few weeks,’ Price continued. ‘Getting the plastering done, tiling the floors and all that.

‘I enjoy being busy, I play darts at the weekend then back down to earth, working on the property and that keeps my mind away from darts.

‘Last year I did up a property to rent out and I started doing really well so I’ve kept it up. If you’re not doing anything else then you’re over-thinking things and it’s no good for you.

‘I’ve also given up social media, especially Twitter which is the worst one for negativity, my wife runs that.

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‘I don’t go up on stage to try and prove people wrong, I just go up there to try and be myself. If I win I win, if I lose I lose, I don’t let the good or bad comments get to me, I do my own thing.’

Price is back in Premier League action this Thursday (Picture: Michael Cooper)

‘The Iceman’ is referring to the backlash on social media from the Grand Slam of Darts final last year, when he beat Gary Anderson to lift his first PDC major.

The 33-year-old returns to the Premier League stage this Thursday against Luke Humphries having picked up a win and two draws from his first three games.

Price made his Premier League debut last year and admitted to not enjoying it at all as he finished bottom of the table, but things have changed this time around.

‘I didn’t know what to expect last year,’ said the Grand Slam champ. ‘I was chucked in the deep end, away week in, week out, the travelling, not seeing my girls, which I didn’t really enjoy.

‘I had a lot of other things on and my head was all over the place. I was into greyhounds, I wanted to be home with the dogs watching them running. We’ve got another person who deals with them now, it was stuff I probably shouldn’t have been doing.

‘I’m more committed to darts now. It was my own frame of mind of not wanting to be in it, it was a terrible time, going to Barnsley losing first round, then traveling for the Premier League.

‘I played him [Humphries] last year in the Europeans and lost 6-1, but that was the worst shape I’ve been in, I didn’t want to be in the Premier League, losing first rounds, he’s going to get a different version of myself this time.’

Price takes on Humphries in the Premier League in Exeter on Friday night before entering the UK Open at the fourth round stage on Friday evening.